NOVEL NEXT XLII. Cold Shower
Tyssa: Why... Why would he do this...?
Back at the orphanage, Rel, Punjo and Jargen, accompanied by the surviving citizens, had made their way back. All hands were on deck to treat the injured -- especially the rescued girls. Tyssa was one of them. Although she had sustained only minor injuries compared to some of her peers, she seemed the most emotionally distraught.
Rel: Tyssa...? Who are you talking about?
Tyssa was in the same room as the three warriors, alongside most of the other girls. Her gaze distant and tormented.
Tyssa: He wouldn't... He'll come back... He wouldn't leave me...
Jargen looked at her with a melancholy gaze.
Jargen: ... She's talking about Cabdan.
Rel couldn't believe his ears. Frustration and anger welled up inside him, and he raised his voice at Tyssa.
Rel: Are you serious?! What will it take for you to see that that guy is a monster? All he's ever done is take advantage of you!
Tyssa widens her eyes, peering straight into Rel's soul.
Tyssa: Shut up... You don't know him like I do...
Rel: Oh, really? What don't I know, then? That despite abusing underage girls, profiting off of the misery and despair of the people of the slums, and being an overall cowardly, greedy disgusting piece of shit, he actually has a heart of gold underneath all that fat?!
She slaps him with no hesitation, then wraps both her hands around his throat.
Tyssa: SHUT UP! HE'S NONE OF THOSE THINGS! YOU ALL ARE THE PROBLEM, IF YOU JUST DID AS HE TOLD YOU NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED...!
Rel grabs her wrists, overpowering her weakened state without much difficulty.
Rel: We've done as he's told us for far too long! Did that improve things for anyone around here...? Open your eyes, Tyssa. He's the reason why we starve, the reason why we barely make enough coin to ensure that we'll have a roof over our heads at the end of the month... He's the reason why you and your friends had to work in that damn place! Don't you want to be free...?
Tyssa snaps back angrily, her voice filled with indignation.
Tyssa: I AM FREE! Mister Cabdan always gave me everything I wanted... Whatever he asked in return felt like nothing in comparison. But now he's gone... He's gone and... And he didn't take me with him...
Tears well up in her eyes.
Rel: ... He didn't take you because he doesn't need you. He's done with you. I'm sorry you can't see that.
Tyssa's anger flared, and she retorts.
Tyssa: How dare you... How dare you say that...
Jargen, who was leaning against a nearby wall, listening silently to their heated exchange, uncrosses his arms and finally intervenes.
Jargen: Yiel... Was it?
Tyssa's eyes widen in surprise as she turns around to face him.
Tyssa: How do you know that name...?
He takes a deep breath before continuing, bracing himself for what was about to be unveiled.
Jargen: You were probably too little to remember... But I was there. I was there the day Cabdan came to your home to collect what your parents owed him. Even though both of them were already dead, he still insisted on taking what he was due.
Tyssa, her voice barely above a whisper, responded.er
Tyssa: My mother and father owed Mister Cabdan coin... Of course he was in his right to take it. Why should he have to let it go uncollected...? Just because they were dead?
Rel shakes his head in utter disbelief.
Rel: I- I can't listen to this... Are you even hearing what you're saying?!
Tyssa seemed genuinely confused by his reaction.
Rel: What kind of animal takes money from two orphaned children whose parents have just died?! Wake up Tyssa, he's been brainwashing you ever since he laid eyes on you!
Jargen signals Rel to be quiet.
Tyssa: It's not like that...
Jargen: ... What happened to Yiel that day, Tyssa?
She clenches her fists.
Tyssa: You were there, weren't you...? Why even ask?
Jargen: Because I wasn't there for the whole thing. I left... Like a coward, I quit working for Cabdan that very night, and instead of taking you and your brother with me... I left you there with him.
Jargen's tone was of deep-seated regret.
Tyssa: A-and I'm thankful for it -- truly! If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have had the luck of having him take care of me...
Jargen: ... And what of your brother, Tyssa? Where is he now? Did he share the same "luck"...?
Tyssa hesistated. She didn't want to answer.
Tyssa: H-he... He didn't. He died.
Rel's eyes widen, as do Punjo's. Jargen did not seem fazed by this however, as if he was already somewhat expecting that to have been the outcome.
Jargen: Just like that...?
She clenches her teeth.
Tyssa: Of course not... He was murdered. Murdered by that maniac, Barr...
Rel couldn't stay quiet any longer.
Rel: BARR?! Barr killed your brother?! He was there...?
She nods reluctantly.
Punjo: That makes no sense... Wasn't he young...? Like, too young ta be doin' that sorta work for Cabdan, let alone ta be killin' someone...?
Jargen, his expression unchanging, continued to press for answers.
Jargen: Yeah... It was his first day on the job. Barr puked his guts out just setting foot into your home, Tyssa. He was scared shitless. You're telling me he killed a little boy that night...?
Angrily, she shouts.
Tyssa: YES! Is that so hard to believe?!
Jargen: ... Depends. Did you see it happen...?
Tyssa does not reply.
Jargen: Ah. So it's just what Cabdan told you.
Tyssa: S-so...? Why would he lie about something like that...?
Jargen shakes his head.
Jargen: Think, Tyssa. Who gets to live in the orphanage?
Tyssa looked down at the ground.
Tyssa: Girls, mostly... Young ones. But there's a good reason for that! Mister Cabdan cannot simply provide accommodation for everyone who needs it... Whoever stays needs to earn the roof over their heads.
Jargen shakes his head.
Jargen: There's something else almost all of those girls have in common... You know what it is.
Once more, she did not want to reply. Rel's voice cut through her silence.
Rel: ... Almost all of them worked in his prostitution ring.
Jargen nods.
Tyssa: S-so...? That doesn't mean anything.
Jargen walks closer to her, seeking to shed a final light on what had transpired.
Jargen: That night, Cabdan had two homeless children before him, the corpses of their deceases parents still inside the rotting walls of their home. He only took one of them with him -- a young, naïve girl, who he could shape into whatever he desired... Who he could profit off of.
Tyssa: No...
Jargen: Yiel wasn't so lucky. He was born a boy.
Tyssa: S-stop...
Jargen backs off, giving her a moment to reflect.
Jargen: You connect the dots. To me, and everyone else you tell this story to... We can all surmise what happened. You can choose to keep believing whatever you want... But we won't allow him to step over us any longer. We've suffered enough under his rule. It's time for a change.
With that, Jargen exited the room, followed by Punjo and Rel. Before he left, Rel turned back to offer one last piece of advice.
Rel: You know... If there's anyone out there who truly cares for you, it's the girl that got stabbed by a poisoned blade and is now fighting for her very life... All thanks to a fight Cabdan himself organized, and to the armed opponent that he knew was out to cheat and unfairly battle her. All Faya ever wanted was to get you girls out of this place, to make enough coin to get you out of these slums, far away from this life, far away from Cabdan... And now, thanks to Cabdan, she's dying. So you sit here, Tyssa. Sit here and cry over the fact that he left you. When you're done... Maybe pay that girl a visit. Hearing a "thank you" before she passes away... Maybe it will make things a bit easier. For both of you...
Rel closes the door behind him, leaving Tyssa alone with her thoughts.